Welcome to Brazil Blends!!!

Being raised in Brazil, coffee was always part of my daily life.

Not until recently though I started to learn all the nuances about this so intriguing grain, that needs a special climate, an especial location and can replicate in so many different forms and species.

Coffee was originally discovered in Ethiopia around 575; the story goes that a priest was looking at a goat, and noticed how energetic the goat would become, after eating that fruit, he then took the fruit to the monastery. There he thought that the taste of the fruit was too bitter so he roasted it. The aroma he felt was exhilarating.

Café was brought to Brazil on the XVIII century. The story goes that governor of a province in Brazil asked that a major in the army bring some seeds to the country. The major went to an expedition in the French Guyana and there, he got the seeds.

Brazil is today the largest producer of coffee and the second consumer market, behind only the USA.

Coffee comes in 2 species, “Robusta” and “Arabica”. The Robusta species is the cheap one. Brands usually mix it in the blends so that coffee can be more affordable to the masses. The Arabica coffee is what we call the specialty coffee. (Not all Arabica is specialty).

Within the Arabica species, we have several types of grains, which make coffee so unique.

Depending on the region where it is grown the coffee tastes differently, Compared to wine, coffee taste and aroma changes with the region, the climate and the altitude of where is grown.

The harvesting is also different depending on the country. So for example a Sumatra coffee in May be able to taste better than a Sumatra coffee in November, depending when the harvest was done.

In August one may be better of drinking Brazil coffee rather than Colombia coffee…there is so many variations to coffee that only now people are beginning to get educate on what a good cup of coffee should be.

In order to better develop the specialty coffee market, the Cup of Excellence award was created. The Cup of excellence takes place in each coffee producer country, where judges from all over the world volunteer their time and their money to travel and cup the coffees.

Those coffees are given a grade and after that the better ones receive the cup of excellence award; they then receive a logo that can be used on their packaging.

This coffee can be sold by the farm by values that goes up to $1,000.00 a 60kg bag, and is consider the Chateneaef Du Pape of coffees.

The development of the specialty coffee market is having a positive effect in the way coffee is grown, the farm is taken care and most important, making sure the small farmers have the opportunity to profit from the care they have during their harvest.


All of what is called specialty coffee must be free of defect and receives a grade of 80 or higher during cupping.

As this market evolves, more and more people will be looking for the difference in the coffee they drink, making sure that this continues to be a market in expansion.